WO2008050846A1

WO2008050846A1 - Optical element pressing apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2008050846A1
Application number: PCT/JP2007/070850
Authority: WO
Inventors: Sunao Miyazaki
Original assignee: Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2006-10-25
Filing date: 2007-10-25
Publication date: 2008-05-02
Also published as: US20090205375A1; CN101528615A; JPWO2008050846A1; KR20090082369A

Abstract

Provided is a pressing apparatus for pressing a glass material with pairs of upper molds and lower molds thereby to form an optical element. In this pressing apparatus, lower-mold pressure applying means applies a pressure to the plural lower molds. A trunk mold guides the paired upper and lower molds. Pressure generating means acts to push up the trunk mold. Centering means centers the individual upper molds by sliding the trunk mold along the upper molds. The centering means includes a suspending member for suspending and supporting the individual upper molds and for moving the individual upper molds in a plane normal to the moving axis of the trunk mold, when the trunk mold is pushed up along the individual upper molds by the pressure generating means.

Description

Specification

Optical element press molding equipment

Technical field

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to an optical element press molding apparatus, and more particularly, to an optical element press molding apparatus used when press molding a highly accurate optical element such as an aspheric lens. Background art

In recent years, attention has been paid to a precision press molding method in which an optical glass element such as a glass lens is press-molded and used as it is without polishing the molding surface. Normally, this type of molding is performed by pressing a glass material in a softened state using a molding die that slides against the barrel die in the barrel die, and optically corresponding to the molding surface of the die. An optical element press molding apparatus is used which has a functional surface formed on a glass material. What is important here is that if the product is relatively small, the productivity will be low if one press molding machine is used to mold with one set of molds. Therefore, a method was proposed in which multiple dies were mounted on a single press molding machine and multiple optical elements were produced at the same time.

[0003] When simultaneously pressing a plurality of dies, it is necessary to devise a method for obtaining an optical element with high molding accuracy. As this method, the first method is to press a plurality of dies using a pressing member such as a flat plate fixed to one pressing shaft perpendicular to the sliding direction of the dies. With this method, the stroke is the shortest among a plurality of molds !, and the strokes of all molds are determined based on the molds. For this reason, in order to mold an optical element that requires wall thickness dimensions and surface tilt accuracy in units of microns, the dimensions of each mold, the dimensions of the pressing member, and the pressing member so that all strokes are within the standard. Although it is necessary to manage well the inclination and the wear at the time of mounting and pressurization, wear and deformation of the contact part with the mold of the pressing member, several hundreds. Under the molding conditions of C, it is almost impossible to manage, including deformation of the molding machine. Therefore, it is necessary to assure the accuracy as described above with the accuracy of the upper die, the barrel die, and other mold components by placing the upper die, which is a molding die, on the barrel die.

[0004] In the pressurizing method as described above, the stroke is the same for all the molds. Therefore, for the same reason as described above, it is impossible to always push all the molds. Nearly possible. Ma Although it is possible to apply pressure with a certain degree of freedom so as to follow the stroke without fixing the pressing member, it is possible to press several molds, especially four or more molds simultaneously. In this case, all the molds cannot be pushed unless the heights of the molds are all on the same plane. In addition, the position at which pressurization is started and the molding speed (glass deformation speed) differ between molds due to variations in the dimensions of the molding material and subtle temperature differences between the molds during pressurization. Often, pressure is applied while the pressing member is inclined with respect to the sliding direction of the mold. For this reason, the applied pressure acts in directions other than the sliding direction of the mold, which leads to galling and breakage of the mold, and the contact portion between the mold and the pressing member is always rubbed and easily worn out. In this condition, the wear becomes intense, and the vicious circle is repeated in which die wear and breakage are further promoted.

[0005] Further, in the above molding apparatus, it is necessary to heat and cool the body mold, the upper mold, and the lower mold at a considerably high and low temperature difference in order to control the temperature of the glass material in the press molding process. Therefore, the body mold, the upper mold, and the lower mold are made of materials having substantially the same thermal expansion coefficient, and a clearance is provided to ensure sliding of the upper mold and the lower mold with respect to the cylinder mold. For this reason, for example, when a glass material is pressed between the lower die by lowering the upper die, the upper die is slid within the barrel die unless pressing pressure is applied to the center of the upper die. The glass material cannot be press-molded with the upper and lower mold surfaces correctly aligned with each other. Furthermore, in extreme cases, galling occurs between the body mold and the upper mold, and the upper mold cannot be completely closed with respect to the body mold, and normal pressing cannot be performed. In other words, as a result, the center of the optical function surface of the molded optical element does not coincide with the optical axis. Also, when pulling up the upper mold to remove the molded product from the mold, if the lifting force is off the center of the upper mold, the upper mold is tilted and the body mold and the upper mold are galling, and the upper mold Can not be opened and closed. Such a molding apparatus has a small clearance force of 0 or less at the sliding part between the body mold and the upper mold under the conditions of actual use. It is more likely to occur;

[0006] As an example of solving the above-mentioned problems of the prior art to some extent, there is a molding apparatus described in Japanese Patent No. 2815037 (Patent Document 1). In the molding apparatus of Patent Document 1, a press pressure is applied to the upper die. One press shaft is divided into an upper shaft and a lower shaft, and the divided upper shaft and lower shaft are divided. Even if the mold height during pressurization differs by stacking multiple disc springs, the difference in the height is absorbed by the deformation of the pan panel, so that each mold is evenly distributed. Press pressure is applied.

[0007] However, the molding apparatus of Patent Document 1 has a drawback in that the dish panel is exposed to a high temperature and sags because the dish panel is located near the upper mold. In order to make up for this drawback, it is necessary to cool the pan panel with water. Furthermore, since the water-cooled member comes into contact with the upper mold during molding, the temperature of the upper mold suddenly decreases and the molding becomes unstable!

[0008] Further, since a plurality of upper molds and lower molds are set in one body mold for the purpose of cost reduction, it is economically impossible to increase the distance between the mold sets. For this reason, the distance between each set of molds is usually at most a few dozen millimeters, and it is necessary to provide a disc spring on each of the shafts corresponding to this distance. Usually, the pressure required for press molding of glass is around 4.9 kN for a φ18 mold, so the strength of the panel used for the dish panel needs to be 4.9 kN or more. It can fit in a space of more than a dozen millimeters. 4. There is usually no 9kN winding spring. Therefore, in Patent Document 1, a disc spring is used. However, if the disc spring has a capacity of 4.9 kN, it is necessary to stack a large number of pan panels, and the length of the part of the panel mechanism As a result, the molding equipment becomes larger. In addition, if the size of the lens to be pressed changes from the initial schedule and the press pressure needs to be changed significantly, the force S that needs to be changed by changing the pan panel and changing the panel constant will be reduced. It takes a lot of labor and labor to disassemble the stored parts and replace the inside pan panel. Thus, the molding apparatus of Patent Document 1 still has a problem. In Patent Document 1, it is inferred that the pressure mechanism does not distribute pressure when the lower die is pressed by the lower die, which does not describe the pressure distribution when the lower die slides and presses within the body die.

Disclosure of the invention

[0009] The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the object of the present invention is to at least slide the barrel mold with respect to the upper mold and press mold the glass material. In this case, when releasing the molded optical element molded product, the force of the operating member applied to the body mold always acts so that it passes through the center of the upper mold, so that a highly accurate optical element can be efficiently used. To manufacture It is an object of the present invention to provide a press molding apparatus for an optical element.

[0010] Further, in the present invention, when the body mold slides with respect to a plurality of upper molds and press molding is performed on the glass material, all the molding materials can be completely pushed, Even if the pressing start position and molding speed (glass deformation speed) differ between molds due to dimensional variations in molding materials and subtle temperature differences between molds during pressurization. It is an object of the present invention to provide a press molding apparatus for optical elements that can be adjusted correspondingly.

[0011] According to the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, a press molding apparatus for molding an optical element by pressing a glass material with a plurality of pairs of upper molds and lower molds. A lower mold pressure applying means for applying pressure; a cylinder mold for guiding the plurality of pairs of upper molds and lower molds; pressure generating means for pushing up the cylinder mold; and the cylinder along the plurality of upper molds Aligning means for aligning each upper mold by sliding the mold, and the aligning means suspends and supports each upper mold, and the barrel generating means by the pressure generating means There is provided a suspension member that has a suspension member that can move each upper mold in a plane perpendicular to the axis of movement of the body mold when the upper mold is pushed up.

[0012] An upper mold pressure distribution means may be further provided that has lever means for pressing each upper mold downward and applying pressure to each upper mold independently.

A lower mold pressure distribution means may be further provided that has lever means for pressing the plurality of lower molds upward and applying pressure to each lower mold independently.

[0013] The upper mold pressure distribution means is a swinging member that is swingably disposed via a fulcrum, and has one end abutting against the upper end of each upper mold and the other end. An oscillating member that biases each of the upper molds downward by being connected to the panel member may be provided, and the pressure acting on each of the upper molds may be adjusted by compressing the panel member.

[0014] The lower mold pressure distribution means is a swinging member that is swingably disposed via a fulcrum, and has one end abutting against the lower end of each lower mold and the other end. A rocking member that biases the lower mold downward by being connected to the panel member may be provided, and the pressure acting on the lower mold may be adjusted by compressing the panel member.

[0015] In the upper mold pressure distribution means, the swing fulcrum of the swing member is variable, and the panel portion The pressure acting on each upper mold may be adjusted without changing the material.

In the lower mold pressure distribution means, the swing fulcrum of the swing member is variable, and the pressure acting on each lower mold may be adjusted without changing the panel member.

[0016] The spring member may be a wound spring.

Upper die pressure distribution means for distributing pressure from the upper die pressure generating means to each upper die;

Further, lower mold pressure distribution means for distributing the pressure from the lower mold pressure generating means to each of the lower molds may be further provided.

[0017] The optical element press molding apparatus according to the present invention has the alignment means described above. Therefore, when press molding is simultaneously performed using a plurality of upper molds and lower molds, the force applied to the upper mold Always support each upper mold in place, and when pushing up the barrel mold, it can act toward the center of the axis of movement of the trunk mold, and the optical function surface that eliminates defects such as galling is on the optical axis. On the other hand, a highly accurate optical element that is accurately positioned can be efficiently manufactured.

[0018] In the present invention, since the pressure distribution means including the lever means is provided, the body mold having a plurality of guide holes is slid on the plurality of upper molds and pressed against the glass material. When molding, all the upper molds can be pushed completely, and the press start position and molding can be performed due to variations in the dimensions of molding materials and subtle temperature differences between the molds during pressurization. Even if the speed of the glass (the glass deformation speed) differs between the molds, it can be adjusted correspondingly to improve the productivity of molded parts with high accuracy.

Brief Description of Drawings

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an optical element press molding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of a main part of the press molding apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a suction pad that sucks and conveys a glass material in the press molding apparatus.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing an air flow path from a rotary pump in the press molding apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a positional relationship among an upper die, a barrel die, and an upper die pressure rod in the press molding apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an alignment member in the press molding apparatus. [Fig. 7] Side view of the alignment member

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an exploded state and an assembled state of the alignment member.

FIG. 9 is a structural diagram of a lower mold pressure adjusting mechanism in the press molding apparatus.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing an operation of pressure molding by the press molding apparatus.

FIG. 11 is a structural diagram of a glass heating mechanism in the press molding apparatus.

FIG. 12 is a side view of a molded product upper die prevention member in the press molding apparatus as seen from the lateral direction.

FIG. 13 is a plan view of the molded product upper mold adhesion preventing member as viewed from above.

FIG. 14 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a press molding apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a plan view of a body mold in the press molding apparatus.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is an overall view of a press apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a main part structure thereof. The press molding apparatus shown in these figures is for press molding by loading a glass material (glass blank) into a mold 1 and pushing up a barrel mold (described later) of the mold 1 by operating the press operating mechanism 2. The press molding is preferably performed in an inert gas atmosphere such as a nitrogen gas atmosphere. For this purpose, the mold 1 and the press operating mechanism 2 are installed in a molding chamber 3 having an airtight structure.

[0021] The molding chamber 3 is arranged on a gantry 10, and a gate valve 11 is provided at an inlet / outlet 301 for carrying in a glass material G and carrying out a molded product, and communicates with the outside through this.

Further, in the molding chamber 3, an exchange means 4 is provided for introducing the glass material G into the mold 1 and for derivation of the molded product. The exchange means 4 has a suction hand 402 constituting a glass-molded article entry / exit means attached to the lower end of a rotating shaft 401 that passes through the ceiling of the molding chamber 3 and is vertically introduced into the molding chamber 3 from the outside. The suction pad 402 is provided at the tip of the suction hand 402. The rotating shaft 401 is rotatably connected to the piston rod 14A of the electric cylinder mechanism 14 provided on the ceiling of the chamber 3, and is moved up and down in the axial direction by the operation of the piston rod 14A. The motor 15 is rotated by the electric train 15 via the gear train 16. In FIG. 1, reference numerals 14A, 15, and 16 are assigned to the same location.

As shown in FIG. 3, the suction finger 404 provided with the suction pad 403 at the tip of the suction hand 402 has a suction pad that is a mold insertion member via a horizontal compliance spring portion 405 at the tip of the suction hand 402. 403 is held. Further, the suction finger 404 is provided with a positioning hole guided by a vertical operation, and a guide member having a positioning pin guided by the positioning hole is mounted on the molding die side correspondingly. ! / The horizontal compliant panel 405 is composed of three upper, middle and lower holding blocks, a pair of plate panels installed between the upper and middle holding blocks, and the plate panel with a 90 ° phase shift. And a pair of plate panels erected between the lower holding blocks, and the horizontal compliance structure connects the compliance plate panel with the upper, middle, and lower three holding blocks. Therefore, a coupling member made of a material having a thermal expansion coefficient larger than these thermal expansion coefficients is used. An abutting member that restricts the vertical movement amount is disposed between the mold insertion member and the guide member. The suction pad 403 is made of a material having low thermal conductivity for the purpose of preventing the molded product from cracking due to heat shock, and is made of a heat-resistant material to adsorb high-temperature molded products. ! / One example is polyimide resin.

Accordingly, the suction pad 403 is moved in the axial direction operation and the rotation operation of the rotating shaft 401 based on the control of the cylinder mechanism 14 and the rotation control of the electric motor 15 in a state where the glass material G is sucked to the suction pad 403. Is inserted into the mold 1 and the molded product is adsorbed by the suction pad 403. To do.

[0024] The suction pad 403 is configured to be capable of independently adsorbing or desorbing corresponding to each of the four molds, and the adsorption source is used for nitrogen (N) substitution in the molding chamber 3.

2

Rotary pump 40. The sub-line branched from the rotary pump 40 is connected to the suction pad 403, and as shown in Fig. 4, the throttle means 41 for adjusting the flow rate at a ratio of one for two of each of the four sub-lines is arranged and each of the four sub-lines. The suction pressure is controlled semi-independently. Since each of the four sublines is equipped with pressure detection means 42! Even if the suction pressure is semi-independent, the holding pressure can be controlled without any problem. In order to destroy the vacuum to release the adsorption force, there is a mechanism that reversely injects nitrogen, and the throttle means 43 is arranged on each of the four sublines so that the reverse injection force can be controlled independently on each line. Has been.

[0025] Located on the side surface of the entrance / exit 301 in FIG. 1, a glass material G for the molding chamber 3 and a means 17 for carrying in / out the molded product are disposed on the gantry 10. The loading / unloading means 17 has a replacement chamber 171 mounted on a piston rod 18A extending laterally from the cylinder mechanism 18 and a mounting table 172 that can be moved left and right through an opening 171A at one end of the replacement chamber 171. The mounting table 172 can be moved laterally by a lateral moving means (for example, a piston cylinder mechanism) 173 provided in the exchange chamber 171.

[0026] Therefore, when the glass material G or the molded product is carried into and out of the molding chamber 3, the piston rod 18A is controlled by the cylinder mechanism 18 with the glass material G placed on the mounting table 172. Is operated, the replacement chamber 171 is moved laterally, and its opening 171A is brought into airtight contact with the gate valve 11. In this state, the inside of the replacement chamber 171 is evacuated by the vacuum pump 40, and then replaced with a nitrogen atmosphere, the gate valve 11 is opened, the molding chamber 3 and the replacement chamber 171 are communicated, and further, The table 172 is introduced into the molding chamber 3 by the moving means 173, and the glass material G is transferred to the replacement means 4 and the molded product is received. Thereafter, the lateral movement means 173 is operated in reverse, the placing table 172 is returned to the exchange chamber 171, the gate valve 11 is closed, and the exchange mechanism 171 is laterally moved by the operation of the cylinder mechanism 18. Take out the molded product from 172 and bring new glass material G into it.

In the present embodiment, the required robot 19 is used for bringing the glass material G into the mounting table 172 and taking out the molded product therefrom. The robot 19 replaces the glass material G from the stocker 20 with the mounting table 172 using suction means and takes the molded product from the mounting table 172 to the required location. That is, the robot 19 is a scalar robot in FIG. 1, but is not limited to this, and may be an XY robot.

[Description of mold apparatus]

Next, the mold apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. The upper part of the body base plate 337 in Fig. 2 is screwed to the body mold 100 via a heat insulating material 338. The joined bottom plate 339 is placed, and the bottom plate 339 is screwed to the trunk-type base plate 337 via a heat insulating material 338. As is apparent from the plan view shown in FIG. 15, the body mold 100 forms a non-cuboid, and an opening 100A penetrating from the front surface of the paper shown in FIG. 2 toward the back surface is formed. Four through holes are formed in the ceiling portion 100B1, and four upper molds 102 are fitted into these through holes, respectively. Further, a bottom portion 100B2 of the non-rectangular body of the body die 100 is formed with a hole portion into which the upper die 102 and four lower dies 101 to be a die set are inserted. The reason for the non-rectangular shape is that in order to reduce the heat capacity of the body mold 100, the part other than the part where the heater enters is deleted to the extent that the required strength is not reduced.

[0029] A notch 100E is formed in the bottom 100B2 of the trunk mold 100, and a protruding top member 300 is arranged in the notch 100E, and each lower mold 101 is placed on each protruding member 300. ing. Each protruding member 300 plays a role of adjusting variation in dimensional accuracy in the axial direction of each lower mold 101.

[0030] In the configuration of the present embodiment, four molded products are simultaneously pressure-molded by a plurality of, for example, four upper and lower mold sets. As will be described later, for example, a total load of 19.6 kN is loaded on the four upper molds 102, and each upper mold 102 needs to be equally loaded. However, due to variations in the finishing accuracy of the dimensions of the upper mold 102, lower mold 101, and barrel mold 100, there are four mold sets in the movement stroke for molding the barrel mold 100 and lower mold 101. May shift slightly. To adjust this stroke, the top member 300 force S is provided.

[0031] On the other hand, a hole for supplying cooling nitrogen gas is provided in the center of the bottom plate 100D, and the nitrogen gas blown to the bottom plate 100D passes through the lower mold 101 along the passage provided in the bottom plate 100D. As shown in FIG. 5, a large-diameter portion 102A and an upper flange portion 102B are formed in each upper die 102 that is sprayed and discharged to the outside of the trunk die 100 through a passage provided in the bottom plate 100D. Reference numeral 105 is a suspension member for suspending the four upper molds 102 at the same time, and includes a disk part 105D, a cylinder part 105E, and a flange part 105F, and the four upper molds 102 are provided on the disk part 105A. Four holes are opened for fitting.

[0032] In FIG. 5, the upper mold member 102 has a circular cross section, and each is located at the center thereof. A small diameter piece 104 is mounted on the top, and when the body mold 100 is raised, it receives a press pressure at the center. Further, the upper mold member 102 is formed with a flange portion 102B having a non-circular cross section located at the upper portion thereof as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, and the large diameter portion 102A described above is formed on the upper die member 102. A dish-shaped suspension member 105 is placed. An alignment means 106 is interposed between the flange portion 102B and the suspension member 105 so that a suspension force acts at the center of the upper mold member 102. As shown in FIG. 8, a belt-like detent member 107 is fixed to the suspension member 105 with screws 108 so as to cross the center, and the side surface thereof corresponds to the side surface of each flange 102B. The upper mold member 102 serves as a detent for the suspension member 105. The suspension member 105 is formed with a through hole 105B through which the flange portion 102B is passed in a posture perpendicular to the rotation stop position.

[0033] As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the alignment member 106 includes a pair of hemispherical protrusion-shaped support portions disposed so as to be shifted from each other by 90 degrees on a surface orthogonal to the sliding direction of the upper mold member 102. 106A and 106B are provided on the ring 106C so as to correspond to the upper mold member 102 and the suspension member 105. Further, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a through hole 106D through which the flange portion 102B of the upper mold member 102 is passed is formed in the center of the ring 106C.

The suspension member 105 is formed with a support groove hole 105C that receives the support portion 106B.

[0034] When the upper mold member 102 is assembled to the suspension member 105 and the alignment means 106, first, the flange portion 102B of the upper mold member 102 is inserted into the through holes 105B and 106D from the lower side. Through this, the flange portion 102B is turned 90 degrees in this state, and the lower surface is supported by the support portion 106A. Thereafter, the rotation preventing member 107 is attached to the suspension member 105 so that the relative position between the upper mold member 102 and the alignment means 106 can be maintained. In this case, the relative positions of the suspension member 105 and the alignment means 106 are ensured by the support portion 106B being in the support groove hole 105C.

Reference numeral 212 in FIG. 2 denotes a hook member for suspending and fixing the suspension member 105 in the chamber 3, and includes a support portion 212A, a lower end hook portion 212B, and an upper end hook portion 212C as shown in FIG. Is done. The lower end hook portion 212B is engaged with the flange portion 105C of the suspension member 105, and the upper end hook portion 212C is configured to be engageable with the holder block 203. [0036] A large number of moldings are simultaneously performed by a set of a plurality of upper molds 102 and lower molds 101. In the molding apparatus of this embodiment, four upper molds 102 and four lower molds 101 are used. After forming the lens by press molding glass, the barrel mold 100 is pulled down to remove the molded lens from between the upper and lower molds, and the molded product remaining on the lower mold 101 is molded into the barrel mold. 100 opening part Work to remove from 100A.

In the present embodiment, the four upper molds 102 are aligned by the alignment member 106.

That is, when the body mold 100 is pulled downward, the flange portion 105F of the suspension member 105 hits the lower end hook portion 212B, and the suspension member 105 does not move downward therefrom.

In FIG. 8, the suspension member 105 is fixed, and when the body mold 100 is lowered, the suspension member 105 and the alignment member 106 are separated from the axis of FIG. A plane in the X—X direction with respect to O—O is in point contact. Further, the surface in the Y—Y direction orthogonal to the X—X direction is in a point contact state due to the contact between the protrusion 106B on the upper surface side of the alignment member 106 and the flange 102B of the upper mold 102. The mold 102 is held in place with the two planes X—X and Y—Y orthogonal to the axis O—O in the descending direction of the body mold 100 kept orthogonal to each other. As a result, when the trunk mold 100 is lowered, the trunk mold 100 can be prevented from being tilted with respect to the axis OO of the upper mold 102, and it is possible to prevent “galling” when the trunk mold 100 slides.

[0039] After the upper die 102 is held by the hook member 212 in FIG. 2, the barrel die 100 is lowered, and after the molded product is taken out, the glass material G is again placed on each lower die 101 and added again. In the case of pressure forming, the body mold 100 is raised while the upper mold 102 is held by the hook member 212. As a result, the body mold 100 is lifted via the suspension member 105 and the alignment member 106 while the through hole is in sliding contact with the upper mold 102 as a guide. At this time, the upper mold 102 does not operate and is almost fixed in place. In this case, the force S required to slide and move the barrel mold 100 without causing “galling” between the four upper molds 102 and the trunk mold 100, and the above-described action of the alignment member 106 are possible. .

[0040] In the state in which the body mold 100 is pulled down, each upper mold 102 is placed in an orthogonal state with respect to the axis 0-0 in FIG. 6 by the suspension member 105 and the alignment member 106. Keep it. When the body mold 100 is raised from this state, the upper mold 102, the alignment member 106, and the suspension member 105 are Since it is held almost in place by its own weight and the above-mentioned orthogonal state is maintained when the body mold 100 is raised, it is possible to prevent “galling”.

Reference numeral 104 in FIG. 2 denotes a pressing plate provided on the upper surface of the flange portion 102B of each upper mold 102. A pressing load of an upper mold pressing rod 202 described later is concentrated in the axial direction of each upper mold 102. It is a member that is intended to work. Each pressing plate 104 is configured such that the total height of the pressing plate 104 matches that of the upper mold 102. Further, the hook member 212 is fixed to the chamber 3 by a holder block denoted by reference numeral 203. Four through holes 203a are formed in the chamber 3, and the upper mold pressure rod 202 is passed through the through holes 203a. As described above, the lower ends of the four upper pressure rods 202 are in contact with the pressing plate 104 (including a case where a minute gap is formed; the same applies hereinafter), and the upper end 202A is located outside the chamber 3. Yes, in contact with one end 230A of the insulator rod 230 provided on the outer top of the chamber 3.

The insulator rod 230 is swingably supported by an insulator fulcrum member 231, and the other end 230 B on the side opposite to the upper end 202 A of the upper mold pressure rod 202 is in contact with the upper end 202 A via the compression spring 232. Fixed to chamber 3. The upper mold calo pressure rod 202, the insulator rod 230, the insulator fulcrum member 231 and the compression spring 232 constitute a pressurization adjusting mechanism (described later) of the upper mold 102. Reference numeral 233 denotes a nitrogen cooling pipe provided at the central portion of the four upper pressurizing rods 202, the upper end of which is coupled to the cooling medium supply port 234 provided in the chamber 3, and the lower end is the cylinder. It faces the upper center of the mold 100, and nitrogen gas cooling is performed along the nitrogen gas groove provided in the body mold 100.

[Upper pressure adjustment mechanism]

A pressurizing adjustment mechanism (upper mold pressure distribution means) 208 of the upper mold 102 includes an upper mold pressure rod 202, an insulator rod 230, an insulator fulcrum member 231, and a compression spring 232. One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for obtaining a large number of molded articles simultaneously by setting a plurality of upper and lower molds. To that end, it is necessary to apply the required pressing load to the four mold sets uniformly. In the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, the pressure of the cylinder rising cylinder is applied to the four upper molds 102 via the cylinder mold 100. The pressure acting on the four upper molds 102 pushes up the end 230A of the insulator rod 230 through the four upper mold pressure rods 202, and simultaneously pushes down the end 230B to compress the compression spring 232. In this case, the pressing force (total load 19.6kN) of the cylinder-type ascending cylinder If it is desirable to apply a load of 4.9 kN to each upper mold 102 evenly, if there is a variation in the distributed load on each upper mold 102, the quality of the four molded products (for example, the lens by pressing) Effect on wall thickness variation). In addition, there are naturally dimensional variations in the upper and lower molds of each set of four units, the upper mold pressure rod 202, etc., and this causes a difference in the pressing stroke of each mold due to the pressing force of the cylinder rising cylinder. .

[0044] In order to mold a high-precision optical element by heating and pressing a glass material, a high pressure (3.92-5. It is necessary to transmit to each upper mold 102 via Furthermore, in an apparatus that repeats the process of heating a glass material to a predetermined temperature (400 to 800 ° C.) in a mold, pressing and then removing the molded product, the molded product, mold member, cylinder In order to repeat heating and cooling of molds, etc., it is required to shorten the heating, cooling, and heating cycle. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the heat capacity of the entire mold apparatus, and it is therefore necessary to reduce the size of the apparatus.

The upper die 102 is pressed by the upper die pressure rod 202 and the rising die 100 shown in FIG. 5, and the upper end surface 100a of the die 100 is placed on the lower end surface of the large diameter portion 102A of the upper die 102. The wall thickness of the molded product can be reduced by pressing through the support 102C and restricting the movement position of the body mold 100.

[0046] Force of upper end surface 100a of all barrel molds 100 against four upper molds 102 to 102 via spacer 102C The same molded product, for example, a lens having the same thickness, by four mold members It is a necessary condition to obtain. For this purpose, a pressing force is independently applied to the four upper molds 102, and the upper end surface 100a of the barrel mold 100 is completely brought into contact with each upper mold 102. Further, a sufficient pressing force is applied to the upper mold 102. It is necessary to let

In the present embodiment, in order to solve the above-described problem, the pressing force of the barrel mold 100 is applied to the panel member, in particular, the pressure adjusting mechanism (upper part) in which the compression spring 232 shown in FIG. Mold pressure distribution means) 208. That is, the pressure adjusting mechanism 208 is configured by contacting or connecting a general compression spring 232 and an upper mold pressure rod 202 to a lever rod 230 supported by a lever fulcrum member 231 as shown in FIG. .

[0048] When a pressing force is applied to the body mold 100 from the body mold ascending cylinder 210 (see Fig. 2: upper mold pressure generating means), pressing by the lower mold 101 and the upper mold 102 that rise together with the body mold 100 is started. , By this operation, the upper mold pressure rod 202 is pushed up through the upper mold 102 and the insulator pad 230 is pushed up. As a result, the compression spring 232 is compressed.

As the press progresses, the upper mold 102 moves while sliding in contact with the through-hole of the trunk mold 100, and the trunk mold 100 moves until the upper end surface 100a of the trunk mold 100 contacts the large diameter portion 102A of the upper mold 102. Is called. In each of the four mold sets, when the upper end surface 100a of the body mold 100 is in contact with the large diameter part 102A of the three upper molds 102, the other large diameter part 102A is Even if the upper end surface 100a is not in contact with the upper end surface 100a, the compression spring 232 is compressed through the upper die pressurizing rod 202 by the pressure from the cylinder-type ascending cylinder 210, so that the upper die 102 is not contacted. The upper end surface 100a of the trunk mold 100 can be pressed. In this way, all the positions of the four upper molds 102 can always be secured at a fixed position, so that the thickness of the molded product can be maintained.

[0049] Next, a specific example of the panel of the compression spring 232 will be described. That is, one flat wire spring made of a silicon chrome steel wire with an outer diameter of 18 mm, an inner diameter of 9 mm, a spring constant force of 4. lN / mm, a maximum load of 568 N, and a free height of 45 mm. The position of the insulator fulcrum member 231 that supports the insulator rod 230 was set so that the ratio of the distance to the upper pressure rod 202 and the distance to the compression spring 232 was 1:10, and the members were assembled. As a result, the pressure adjustment mechanism that can withstand a load 10 times the maximum load of the compression spring 232 (in this case, 5.68 kN) can be configured by the lever principle. By assembling four of these to correspond to each upper mold 102, a pressure adjustment mechanism for taking four pieces is completed (withstands up to 22.7 kN at full pressure). Therefore, compared with the molding apparatus of Patent Document 1 in which a disc spring is incorporated in the chamber, it is not necessary to assemble a large amount of pan panel, so there is no need for adjustment. Yes, design becomes easy. Further, it is not necessary to cool the compression spring 232.

[0050] A similar configuration is possible with a compression spring 232 using a normal piano wire. Specifically, a flat wire spring consisting of a piano wire with an outer diameter of 28 mm, a wire diameter of 4.5 mm, a spring constant of 68.6 N / mm, a maximum load of 862 N, and a free height force of 0 mm is used. Using one, the position of the insulator fulcrum member 231 that supports the insulator rod 230 was set so that the ratio of the distance to the upper die pressure rod 202 and the distance to the compression spring 232 was 1: 6, and each member was assembled. this As a result, the pressure adjustment mechanism that can withstand the load of 6 times the maximum load of the compression spring 232 (5.17kN in this case) can be configured by the lever principle. By assembling four of these parts so as to correspond to each upper mold 102, a pressure adjusting mechanism for four pieces is completed (withstands up to 20.7kN at full pressure). In this state, the thrust of the cylinder-type ascending cylinder rod (total pressure applied to the four upper molds 102) was set to 19.6 kN, and the pressure variation between each upper mold pressure rod 202 was measured. It was confirmed that it was within the variation range. After that, using a die set adjusted to within 0.2 mm in height variation force S up to the pressing plate 104, the finished size is φ 19.6 kN, which is one of the molding conditions. When a lens for a video camera with a lens thickness of 10 mm, a center wall thickness of 3.5 mm, and a lens surface curvature of 15 and 20 mm is molded, all four molds are completely free from inconvenience such as galling. The molded product that was cut and finished perfectly coincided with the cavity space formed by each mold, and a molded product that sufficiently satisfied the thickness accuracy and the tolerance of the optical surface inclination was obtained.

[Lower pressure mechanism]

The lower mold pressurization mechanism (lower mold pressure distribution means) is shown in FIG. 9, but reference numeral 300 in FIG. 2 denotes a protruding member provided on the lower surface of the flange portion 101b of each lower mold 101. This is a member that causes the pressing load of the pressure rod 302 to act intensively in the axial direction of each lower mold 101. Each projecting member 300 is configured such that the total height of each of the lower molds 101 matches. As shown in FIG. 2, the chamber 3 has four through holes 303a, and the lower mold pressure rod 302 is passed through the through hole 303a. As described above, the upper ends of the four lower pressure rods 302 are close to the protruding member 300, and the lower ends 302A are outside the chamber 3 as shown in FIG. It is in contact with one end 330A of an insulator rod 330 connected to an insulator fulcrum member 331 provided in the middle of the ascending cylinder. The lever rod 330 is connected by a lever fulcrum member 331 and is connected to the compression spring unit 333 at the other end 330B opposite to the one end 330A that contacts the lower end 302A of the lower mold pressure rod 302. The compression spring unit 333 includes a compression spring 332 and a compression spring holding member 334. Reference numeral 335 in FIG. 2 is a nitrogen cooling pipe provided at the center of the four lower pressurizing rods 302, one end of which is connected to a cooling medium supply port 336 provided in the chamber 3, The other end is a base plate 337, a heat insulating material 338, a hole 337a, 338a, 339a that penetrates the bottom plate 339 It faces the lower center 100b of 0, and nitrogen gas cooling can be performed along a nitrogen gas groove provided in the body mold 100.

[Lower mold pressure adjusting mechanism]

The pressurization adjusting mechanism of the lower mold 101 includes a lower mold pressurizing pad 302, an insulator rod 330, an insulator fulcrum member 331, a compression spring 332, and a compression spring holding member 334 as shown in FIG. The lower pressure rod 302 is biased downward by the biasing force of the compression spring 332.

Yes

[0053] One of the problems of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for obtaining a large number of molded articles simultaneously by setting a plurality of upper and lower molds. To that end, it is necessary to apply the required pressing load to the four mold sets uniformly during cooling. In the molding apparatus shown in FIG. 2, the pressure of the lower mold raising cylinder 340 (lower mold pressure generating means) is applied to the four lower molds 101 via the pressure adjusting mechanism of the lower mold 101. The pressure of the lower die raising cylinder 340 pushes up one end 330A of the four lever rods 330 and simultaneously pushes up the lower end 302A of the lower die pressure rod 302. At that time, the other end 330B of the insulator rod 330 is lowered downward through the insulator fulcrum member 331, and at the same time, the compression spring 332 is compressed. In this case, it is desirable to configure the pressing force of the lower die ascending cylinder 340 (the total load is 9 · 8k N) to apply the load of 2.45kN evenly to each lower die. If there is a variation in the distribution load, the quality of the four molded products (for example, variations in lens thickness due to pressing) will be affected. In addition, there are naturally variations in the dimensions of the upper and lower molds, the lower mold pressure rod 302, etc. of each of the four units, and this causes a difference in the movement stroke of each mold due to the pressing force of the lower mold lifting cylinder 340. .

[0054] In order to mold a high-precision optical element by heating the glass material of the present invention, a high pressure (0.98-3.92kN) is generated in each lower mold 101 during cooling, and the lower mold is raised. It is necessary to transmit from the cylinder 340 to each lower mold 101 via each member. Furthermore, in an apparatus that repeats the process of heating a glass material to a predetermined temperature (400 to 800 ° C) in a mold, pressing and then removing the molded product, the molded product, mold member, body mold, etc. In order to repeat heating and cooling, it is required to shorten the heating cycle. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the heat capacity of the entire mold apparatus, and therefore it is necessary to reduce the size of the apparatus.

[0055] Further, in the mold apparatus of the present embodiment, the same molded product, for example, the same, is formed by four mold members. In order to obtain a lens with a single thickness, the molded product is pressed by the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101 with the lower mold pressure rod 302 shown in FIGS. Without pressing the lower mold 101, the thickness of the molded product is determined. Therefore, in order to make the indentation amount of the molded product being cooled even, it is an absolute condition that the pressure is evenly divided into four parts.

[0056] For that purpose, it is necessary to independently apply equal pressing force to the four lower molds 101 and to apply sufficient pressing force to each of the lower molds 101.

In the present embodiment, in order to solve the above problem, the pressing force of the lower die ascending cylinder 340 is applied to the bottom member, in particular, the pressurization as described above in which the compression spring 332 shown in FIG. An adjustment mechanism is provided. In each of the 4 mold sets, when the pressure is applied only to the 3 lower molds 101, the lower mold lifting cylinder can be used even if the pressure is not applied to the other lower mold 101. By applying a compression spring 332 load through the lower die pressure rod 302 by pressing from the 340, the pressure from the lower die raising cylinder 340 can be applied to the lower die 101 not in contact. As a result, the pressure applied to the four lower molds 101 can always be kept constant, so that the thickness of the molded product can be maintained.

[0057] Next, a specific example of the compression spring 332 will be described. In other words, one flat wire spring made of a silicon chrome steel wire with an outer diameter of 18 mm, an inner diameter of 9 mm, a spring constant of 23.5 N / mm, a maximum load of 382 N, and a free height of 5 mm is used. Each member was assembled by setting the position of the insulator fulcrum member 331 supporting the insulator rod 330 such that the ratio of the distance to the upper mold pressure rod 202 and the distance to the compression spring 232 was 1: 7. As a result, the pressure adjustment mechanism that can withstand a load 7 times the maximum load of the compression spring 332 (2.68 kN in this case) can be configured by the principle of the insulator. By assembling four units corresponding to each lower mold 101, a pressure adjustment mechanism for four units is completed (withstands up to 10.7kN at full pressure). Therefore, compared with the molding device of Patent Document 1 in which a disc spring is incorporated in the chamber, there is no need to adjust a large amount of disc springs, and there is no need for adjustment. And design becomes easy. Further, it is not necessary to cool the compression spring 332.

[0058] A similar configuration is possible even with a compression spring using a normal piano wire. Specifically, one outer diameter is 25mm, wire diameter is 3.5mm, spring constant is 28.4N / mm, maximum load Is 0.49kN, using a single flat wire spring made of piano wire with a free height of 40mm, and the position of the insulator fulcrum member 331 that supports the insulator rod 330 is the distance to the lower die pressure rod 302 and the compression spring. Each member was assembled with the ratio of the distance to 332 set to 1: 6. As a result, the pressure adjustment mechanism that can withstand the load of 6 times the maximum load of the compression spring 332 (in this case 1.96kN) was achieved by the principle of the insulator. By assembling four units corresponding to each lower mold 101, a pressure adjustment mechanism for four units is completed (withstands a total pressure of 7.84 kN). In this state, the thrust of the rod of the lower die ascending cylinder 340 (total pressurizing force applied to the four lower die 101) was set to 6.86 kN, and the pressure variation between each lower die pressure rod 302 was measured. The range was confirmed to be within the range of 98N. After that, using the die set adjusted to within 0.2mm, the variation force S of the height up to the pressing plate 104, when the press is one of the molding conditions, 19.6kN cylinder die rising pressure, cooling Inside, a lens for a video camera was molded with a lower die pressure of 6.86kN, a finished force dimension of Φ 10mm, a center wall thickness of 3.5mm, and a lens surface curvature of 15 and 20mm respectively. However, all four units are almost completely cut without causing any problems such as galling, and the finished product is completely matched with the mold space formed by each mold. A molded product that sufficiently satisfies the allowable value of was obtained.

[0059] Thus, when the glass material G is press-molded using the press operating mechanism 2 of FIG. 2, first, from the state shown in FIG. 10 (a), the upper mold is moved by the cylinder mechanism 210 (see FIG. 2). When the pressure rod 202 is moved downward to lower the body mold 100, the flange portion 105C of the suspension member 105 hits the lower end hook portion 212B. For this reason, the suspension member 105 does not move downward, and the upper mold 102 does not move downward, thereby forming a so-called mold opening. Then, using the adsorption node 402 shown in FIG. 3, the glass material G is introduced into the lower mold 101 in the mold 1 and heated by a heater.

Next, when the upper die pressure rod 202 is moved upward by the cylinder mechanism 210 to raise the barrel die 100, the glass material G is pressed against the upper die 102 as shown in FIG. 10 (b). .

Next, when the body mold 100 is further raised by the cylinder mechanism 210, the upper mold pressure rod 202 as shown in FIG. 10 (c) applies a press pressure to the center of the upper mold 102 via the pressure plate 104. (After that, during cooling, the cylinder mechanism 340 pushes up the upper mold pressure rod 202 and pushes the thrust member 300. And press the lower mold 101 upward).

[0062] Therefore, even if the sliding portion between the body mold 100 and the upper mold 102 has a clearance necessary for sliding, the body mold 100 can be raised while the posture of the upper mold 102 is kept vertical. As a result, with respect to the horizontal direction, molding can be performed in a state in which the position of the optical functional surface with respect to the optical axis of the molded optical element in which the positional deviations of the molding surfaces of the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101 are eliminated is correctly maintained.

In particular, in this embodiment, the dimensions of the upper mold 102 and the upper mold pressure rod 202 are determined from the relationship in which the cylinder mold 100 is driven by the common cylinder mechanism 210 and is simultaneously pressed by the four upper molds 102. It is necessary to absorb errors. However, since the upper mold pressure rod 202 is held by the pressure adjusting mechanism 208, as shown in FIG. 10 (c), the upper mold 102 is inserted through the large diameter portion 102A and the spacer 102C. After the upper end surface 100a of the barrel mold 100 hits, even if the barrel mold 100 is further lifted, the rise can be terminated at that position.

[0064] Further, after the molding, in order to open the mold, when the body mold 100 is lowered by the action of the cylinder mechanism 210, the lower end hook portion 212B is moved to the suspension member 105 as shown in FIG. At this time, the aligning member 106 works to perform self-aligning action. Therefore, since the upper die 102 receives a holding force at the center thereof, the holder block 203, the suspension member 105, and the flange portion 102B have sufficient accuracy with respect to the barrel die 100. The upper mold 102 can be held on the spot and the body mold 100 can be lowered vertically without the force S causing force and kinking even if it is not held.

In this embodiment, the pressure distribution means is provided in both the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101. However, the pressure distribution means is not provided in both of the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101, or the upper mold 102 is not limited thereto. 102 or lower mold 101 may be provided.

[0066] (Glass heating mechanism)

As shown in FIG. 11, the glass heating mechanism includes a glass calorie heater 600 and a driving unit 604 force. The glass heater 600 incorporates a cartridge heater 602, is connected to an independent temperature controller, and is controlled by a thermocouple 603 inserted into the glass heater 600. Since the glass-caloric heat heater 600 is set to a high temperature (for example, 900 ° C.), it is made of a material that can withstand the high temperature (for example, SKD61, SKD62, Hastelloy, and more preferably, Anubiloy, cemented carbide). The drive unit 604 includes a connecting unit 605 that connects the heater unit 601 and the drive unit 604. The glass heater 600 can be inserted through the body-shaped opening.

[0067] Next, a process of specifically molding an optical element molded product using the press molding apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described in the order of carry-in 'molding' and carry-out centering on the glass material G. The optical element molded here is an aspheric lens used in a camera, a video camera, or the like.

[0068] The glass material G is a glass blank previously formed into a spherical shape, and is first placed on the pallet 20C of the stocker 20 in FIG. Then, the robot 19 is operated to bring the suction band 193 to the position, and suck and hold one glass material G from the pallet 20C. Next, the suction band 193 places the glass material G on the mounting table 172 by the operation of the robot 19. Repeat this 4 times to place 4 glass materials G on the table 172. The glass material G on the table 172 is at room temperature and has not been heated in advance. As described above, the glass material G is carried into the molding chamber 3 by the action of the carry-in / out means 17 and is replaced by a polyimide resin exchange means. Adsorbed and held by the suction pad 403 of 4 and introduced into the mold 1. Here, the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101 are preheated to a temperature of, for example, about 10 ¹⁶ poise in terms of glass viscosity.

[0069] When the glass material G is introduced into the mold 1, the glass material centering mechanism 500 shown in FIG. 1 is introduced into the mold 1, and the glass material G is moved by the movement of the glass material centering cylinder 501. Centering operation is performed so that the lower mold 101 is located at the center.

[0070] Then, the glass-caloric heat heater 600 maintained at 900 ° C by the cartridge heater 602 is operated between the lower mold 101 and the glass material G and the lower part of the upper mold 102 from the window of the barrel mold 100 by the operation of the cylinder mechanism 604. Inserted into. The upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101 are heated to, for example, a glass viscosity of about 10 ⁹ poise by a cartridge heater provided in the body mold 100. On the other hand, the glass material G is heated by the glass heater 600 to a temperature of, for example, about 10 ⁷ poise in terms of glass viscosity. After the glass material G and the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101 are heated for a desired time (for example, 90 seconds), the cylinder mechanism 604 is operated to pull out the glass heater 400 from the window force of the same mold 100. Therefore, for example, the cylinder-type ascending cylinder is raised at a pressure of 196 MPa and press-molded. Flange part 102A force After fully contacting the upper end of the body mold 100 via the spacer 102C (for example, after 10 seconds), turn off the heater of the body mold 100, and supply the cooling medium introduction part 101B of the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101. , 102D introduced cooling medium, upper mold 102 and Between the temperature of the lower mold 101 from ΙΟ ¹ "· ⁵ a glass viscosity of about 10 ¹³ poise, addition of pressing pressure from the bottom the lower die 101 (e.g., at total pressure 98 MPa). On the other hand, cutting of the upper mold 102 away In order to prevent the molded product from sticking to the upper mold 102 when the mold is opened between the molded product and the molded product, the molded product upper mold adhesion prevention member 700 (see Fig. 1) equipped with a cylinder insertion / extraction mechanism. ) is揷入. Thereafter, continued cooling, after the temperature of the molded product became ιο ¹⁴ · ⁵ poises example a glass viscosity, the barrel die 100 descends (moldings upper mold adhesion preventing member 700, Lower the mold together with the body mold 100), open the mold, remove the molded product upper mold adhesion prevention member 700, and remove the molded product from between the lower mold 101 and the upper mold 102 with the suction pad 403. The relationship between the adhesion prevention member 700 and the upper mold 102 is shown in Fig. 12 and Fig. 13. In Fig. 12, the upper mold adhesion prevention member of the molded product is shown. 700 is a view from the side, and FIG. 13 is a view from the top.

[0071] After that, the molded product is returned to the mounting table 172 by the reverse operation of the switching means 4, taken out from the molding chamber 3 by the loading / unloading means 17, and further, the robot 20 operates the nozzle 20C. Returned to

[0072] In the present embodiment, the molding die 1 has four (sets) of the upper die 102 and the lower die 101 that are operated in the common barrel die 100. The same force S as in FIG. The structure of the alignment member 106 as described above may be adopted for the structure of the upper mold 102 and the lower mold 101. Further, in the present embodiment, the mold 1 is configured such that the four upper molds 102 and the lower mold 101 are operated in the common body mold 100, but the body mold 100 as shown in FIG. The upper body 702 is divided into the upper body mold 702 and the upper body mold 702 integrally holds the four upper molds 102, and the lower body mold 704 is integrally held with the four lower molds 101. A structure in which the upper body mold 702 and the lower body mold 704 are slid while being guided by the long pin 706 may be employed. In this structure, the upper trunk mold 702 is suspended and supported by the alignment member 106.

[0073] As described above, the suspension member 105 responds via the pressing plate 104 so that at least the press pressure parallel to the sliding surface with the trunk mold 100 acts at the center of the upper mold 102, In addition, since the suspension member 105 suspended and supported by the hook member 212 is interlocked via the alignment member 6 so that the pulling force acts at the center, the glass material G is press-molded. In this case, and when releasing the molded optical element molded product, the force of the upper and lower barrel molds applied to the upper mold 102 can always be caused to pass through the center of the upper mold 102. Optical function A highly accurate optical element whose surface is accurately positioned with respect to the optical axis can be efficiently manufactured. According to the present invention, a mold for optical glass suitable for a precision press molding method excellent in durability and releasability from optical glass can be provided. Also, by pressing the optical glass using this mold, various optical elements can be manufactured without being polished after molding, so that an optical element manufacturing method that is mass-productive and advantageous in terms of cost can be provided. .

Claims

The scope of the claims

[1] A press molding apparatus for molding an optical element by pressing a glass material with a plurality of pairs of upper and lower molds,

Lower mold pressure applying means for applying pressure to the plurality of lower molds;

A body mold for guiding the upper mold and the lower mold of the plurality of pairs;

Pressure generating means for pushing up the barrel mold;

Aligning means for aligning each upper mold by sliding the body mold along the plurality of upper molds,

The alignment means suspends and supports the upper molds, and is orthogonal to the movement axis of the barrel mold when the pressure generating means pushes up the barrel molds along the upper molds. A suspension member is provided that allows the upper molds to move on a plane.

[2] The upper mold pressure distribution means according to claim 1, further comprising lever means for pressing the upper molds downward and applying pressure to the upper molds independently. Press molding equipment.

[3] The apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising lower mold pressure distribution means having lever means for pressing the plurality of lower molds upward and applying pressure to each lower mold independently. The press molding apparatus as described.

[4] The upper mold pressure distribution means is a swinging member that is swingably disposed via a fulcrum, and has one end abutting against the upper end of each upper mold and the other end. 3. A swing member that biases each upper mold downward by being connected to a panel member, and adjusts the pressure acting on each upper mold by compressing the panel member. The press molding apparatus as described.

[5] The lower mold pressure distributing means is a swinging member that is swingably disposed via a fulcrum, and has one end abutting against the lower end of each lower mold and the other end. 4. A rocking member that urges each of the lower molds downward by being connected to a panel member, and adjusts the pressure acting on each of the lower molds by compressing the panel member. The press molding apparatus as described.

[6] In the upper mold pressure distribution means, the swing fulcrum of the swing member is variable, and the panel portion 5. The press molding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the pressure acting on each upper mold is adjusted without changing the material.

7. The lower mold pressure distribution means according to claim 5, wherein a swing fulcrum of the swing member is variable, and a pressure acting on each of the lower molds is adjusted without changing the panel member. Press molding equipment.

8. The press molding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the panel member is a wound panel.

[9] An upper mold pressure distributing means for distributing the pressure from the upper mold pressure generating means to the upper molds, and a lower mold pressure distributing means for distributing the pressure from the lower mold pressure generating means to the lower molds. 2. The optical element press molding apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: